Overview

• The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has issued an alert about a surge in online scams targeting religious pilgrims and tourists across India.
• Fraudsters use fake websites, social media profiles, WhatsApp accounts, and paid advertisements to offer services like helicopter rides, hotel bookings, and tour packages.
• Victims often realize they have been duped after making payments, as no services are provided and contact numbers become unreachable.
• The public is urged to verify bookings through official portals such as heliyatra.irctc.co.in for Kedarnath helicopter services and somnath.org for Somnath guest houses.
• I4C is implementing a multi-pronged strategy, including scam signal exchanges with tech platforms, hotspot identification, disabling fraudulent content, and enhancing reporting features on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal.